From enchanted animals to bizarre rock-and-roll stories, discover hundreds of far-out facts guaranteed to give your trivia game a whole new twist. Did you know duck dander is hallucinogenic? Or that Katherine Hepburn had a phobia of dirty hair? Have you ever wondered about the Magical Skull of Doom or contemplated the mysterious Transylvanian Tablets? The Book of the Bizarre is a veritable treasure trove of startling and stranger-than-fiction trivia that spans history, continents, even worlds. Never before have so many truly frightful facts been gathered together in one place. Teeming with the strange, the shocking, and the downright fantastic, The Book of the Bizarre’s thirteen chapters include: Something Wicked: Mysterious Objects & Haunted Homes, Tender Murderers and Malevolent Males: Killingly Good Tales of Terror, and Morbid Writers and Tortured Artists: From Edgar Allan Poe to Vincent Van Gogh. Terrifying topics range from Corpses on Campus to Strange Rock and Roll Stories to Medical Maladies, Conspiracy Theories, Superstitions, Hexes, and even UFOs. The Book of the Bizarre is designed for the depraved, outlandish enough for the eccentric, and freaky enough for even the hardest trivia nut.

A book of information that you didn't even know that you wanted to know.

The author of The Book of the Bizarre returns with a new compendium of freaky facts, terrifying trivia, and true stories that are stranger than fiction. In Beyond Bizarre, Varla Ventura presents an all-new batch of nightmarish tales that teem queasy diseases and paranormal encounters—not to mention the outrageous, outlandish, and the simply strange. Arranged into thirteen chilling chapters like Haunted Hollywood, Tales from the Cryptids, Bride of the Bizarre, and It’s Enough to Make You Hurl, Beyond Bizarre tackles everything from female pirates and creepy candy stripers to psychic predictions, virgin shark births and much, much more. A word of warning: this book is not for the faint of heart!

Another incredible collection of unusual trivia sure to shock and amaze, from the people who brought you The Ultimate Book of Top Ten Lists. Discover freaks of nature, odd crimes, shocking deaths, devastating disasters, blood-curdling rites, crazy conspiracies and much more. Here are just some of the lists full of fascinating facts awaiting you inside: •Gruesome Torture Devices •Mass Hysteria Outbreaks •Unbelievable Miniatures •Disturbingly Scary Clowns •Outer Space Mysteries •Astonishing Aphrodisiacs •Disgusting Ancient Jobs •Spooky Sports Curses •World-Famous Penises •Mail-Order-Bride Shockers •Brutal Pope Deaths •Outrageous Wedding Locales •Grossest Edible Animals •Appalling Religious Practices

Over fifty of the most fascinating accounts of history’s greatest unsolved mysteries. Did werewolves roam the countryside of fifteenth century France? What exactly is El Chupacabra, a creature whose name translates to “The Goat Sucker” in English? What phantoms and apparitions drift the halls of Borley Rectory, earning it the nickname of “The Most Haunted House in England”? Featuring maps, callouts, and facts that locate these mysterious happenings, Strange is a groundbreaking book and the first of its kind. In this riveting account of history’s most baffling mysteries, two of the world’s leading authorities on the supernatural, writer Colin Wilson and his son, Damon, search for the elusive answers to the most puzzling questions of the all time—from the fate of Atlantis to the curses of the ancient Egyptians to the Bermuda Triangle. Dozens of mysteries, some that have puzzled scientists and thinkers for centuries, are collected, illustrated, and explained in this captivating—and chilling—book. Lavishly illustrated and expertly written, Strange continues the Wilsons’ quest for answers to the great mysteries of the universe, taking readers on a journey beyond the imagination where fact seems stranger than fiction.

True tales of crimes so bizarre you might not believe them. The mysterious disappearance of thousands of false teeth, international travel via the postal system, doughnut delivery heists, clowns terrorising a neighbourhood, the theft of a three-storey-high replica mango, criminal clairvoyants making off with haunted cash: could crime get any weirder, and could people get any stupider? In Australia's Most Bizarre Crimes, Peter Coleman explores the archives and recent records to produce this astounding collection of criminal mishaps that will have you laughing even as you shake your head in disbelief.

A celebration of all the weird and wonderful books to be found at an antiquarian bookshop.

"Ask anyone to interview a candidate and you will never get to hear “Am I trained to do that?” That is because interviewing is never taken as a specialized job. Most people take it as an extempore activity, to be done while signing papers on their table or reading messages and making/receiving calls on their cell phone. The usual perception is that the candidate needs to be prepared for anything and answer all kinds of questions. After all they have applied for and need the job so they will have to be flexible and ready to do anything. The interviewer will exercise his choice and decide whom to select and whom to reject. Interviewing is an art, the outcome of which has very serious consequences on both sides. This book is as much a must read for all panel members as it is for the candidates, to understand the dynamics of classic real life interviews and prepare themselves accordingly. All the best to readers on both sides of the table… "

Gardeners love tulips, lilies, and pansies—the common, but beautiful, plants found in the average garden. But there are realms in the plant world far beyond these familiar favorites. In Bizarre Botanicals, plant experts Larry Mellichamp and Paula Gross take readers on a curious botanical journey of weirdly wonderful plants that can be grown at home. Bizarre Botanicals features over 75 astonishing plants that have extraordinary abilities—from pyrotechnic spores that can burst into flame when ignited to flowers that lure insects to their deaths. Each plant profile includes essential care and cultivation information. A difficulty scale alerts gardeners to how easy (or difficult) it is to grow the plant at home. There’s no reason to forsake lilies and petunias. But after reading Bizarre Botanicals, gardeners will want to take a walk on the weird side and try a few of these peculiar plants for themselves.